ANNOUNCEMENT OF ACCEPTANCES
OFFER UPDATE
INFRAMOBILITY
NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION IN OR INTO OR FROM ANY RESTRICTED JURISDICTION OR WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OF ANY SUCH JURISDICTION
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
20 May 2022
RECOMMENDED ALL CASH OFFER
by
INFRAMOBILITY
(a newly incorporated company that is indirectly wholly owned by Pan-European Infrastructure III, SCSp)
for
STAGECOACH GROUP PLC
ANOUNCEMENT OF ACCEPTANCES
On 9 March 2022, the boards of Inframobility
Level of acceptances
PEIF III Bidco is pleased to announce that, as at 3.00 p.m. on 19 May 2022, valid acceptances of the Offer had been received in respect of 150,133,189 Stagecoach Shares, representing approximately 27.22 per cent. of the issued share capital of Stagecoach (excluding treasury shares).
So far as PEIF III Bidco is aware, none of these acceptances have been received from persons acting in concert with PEIF III Bidco.
This total includes acceptances received in respect of 57,661,967 Stagecoach Shares (representing approximately 10.46 per cent. of the issued share capital of Stagecoach (excluding treasury shares)) which were subject to an irrevocable commitment procured by PEIF III Bidco.
Interests in Stagecoach Shares
As announced on 25 March 2022, PEIF III Bidco acquired 93,720,491 Stagecoach Shares, representing approximately 16.99 per cent. of Stagecoach's issued share capital (excluding treasury shares).
As at the close of business in
Name |
Nature of interest |
Number of relevant securities |
Percentage of Stagecoach issued share capital (excluding treasury shares) |
PEIF III Bidco[1] |
Ordinary shares |
93,720,491 |
16.99% |
DWS Investments ( |
Ordinary shares |
256,415 |
0.046% |
Save as disclosed in this Announcement, as at the close of business in
· held any interest in, or any right to subscribe for, or any short position (whether conditional or absolute and whether in the money or otherwise) in, including any short position under a derivative in relation to, or is party to any agreement to sell or has any delivery obligation or right to require another person to purchase or take delivery of, any relevant securities of Stagecoach;
· has any outstanding irrevocable commitment or letter of intent with respect to any relevant securities of Stagecoach; and
· save for any borrowed shares which have either been on-lent or sold, had borrowed or lent any relevant securities of Stagecoach.
Acceptance condition
As at 3.00 p.m. on 19 May 2022, PEIF III Bidco may count 243,853,680 Stagecoach Shares (representing approximately 44.21% per cent. of the issued share capital of Stagecoach (excluding treasury shares)) towards satisfaction of the acceptance condition to its Offer.
Unconditional date
The Offer, which remains subject to the outstanding Conditions set out in the Offer Document, remains open until 1.00 p.m. (
Action to be taken
Stagecoach Shareholders who have not yet accepted the Offer are urged to do so as soon as possible in accordance with the following procedures:
· acceptances of the Offer in respect of certificated Stagecoach Shares should be made by completing and returning the Form of Acceptance accompanying the Offer Document and returning the relevant share certificate(s) as soon as possible and, in any event, so as to be received by Link Group by no later than 1.00 p.m. (
· acceptances in respect of uncertificated Stagecoach Shares should be made electronically through CREST so that the TTE instruction settles no later than 1.00 p.m. (
Full details on how to accept the Offer are set out in paragraph 15 of Part II and Parts D and E of Appendix I of the Offer Document.
The Offer Document and the Form of Acceptance are available on PEIF III Bidco's website at https://www.dws.com/en-gb/Our-Profile/media/media-releases/dws_infrastructure/ and Stagecoach's website at https://www.stagecoachgroup.com/.
Further copies of the Offer Document and the Form of Acceptance may be obtained by contacting Link Group on 0371 664 0443 from within the
General
Defined terms used but not defined in this Announcement have the same meanings as set out in the Offer Document.
The percentages of Stagecoach Shares referred to in this Announcement are based upon a figure of 576,099,960 Stagecoach Shares in issue on 19 May 2022 less the 24,581,369 Stagecoach Shares held in treasury.
Enquiries:
Morgan Stanley Financial Adviser to PEIF III Bidco Laurence Hopkins Corporate Broker to PEIF III Bidco Andrew Foster Alex Smart |
+44 (0) 20 7425 8000 |
Finsbury Glover Hering (Communications Adviser to PEIF III Bidco) Guy Lamming |
+44 (0) 20 7251 3801 |
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is acting as legal adviser to Pan-European Infrastructure III, SCSp ("PEIF III") and PEIF III Bidco in connection with the Offer.
Important notices relating to the Financial Adviser
Morgan Stanley, which is authorised by Prudential Regulation Authority ("PRA") and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority ("FCA") and the PRA in the
Further information
This Announcement is for information purposes only and is not intended to and does not constitute, or form part of, an offer, invitation or the solicitation of an offer or invitation to purchase, or otherwise acquire, subscribe for, sell or otherwise dispose of any securities, or the solicitation of any vote or approval in any jurisdiction pursuant to the Offer or otherwise, nor shall there be any sale, issuance or transfer of securities of Stagecoach pursuant to the Offer or otherwise in any jurisdiction in contravention of applicable laws. The Offer will be made solely by means of the Offer Document and (in respect of Stagecoach Shares held in certificated form) the accompanying Forms of Acceptance, which will, together, contain the full terms and conditions of the Offer including details of how it may be accepted. Any decision in respect of, or other response to, the Offer should be made only on the basis of the information contained in the Offer Document and (in respect of Stagecoach Shares held in certificated form) the Forms of Acceptance.
This Announcement does not constitute a prospectus or a prospectus equivalent document.
This Announcement has been prepared for the purposes of complying with English and Scots law, the rules of the London Stock Exchange, the Listing Rules and the City Code and the information disclosed may not be the same as that which would have been disclosed if this Announcement had been prepared in accordance with the laws and regulations of any jurisdictions outside the
Overseas jurisdictions
The availability of the Offer to Stagecoach Shareholders who are not resident in and citizens of the
The release, publication or distribution of this Announcement in or into jurisdictions other than the
This Announcement has been prepared for the purpose of complying with English and Scots law and the City Code and the information disclosed may not be the same as that which would have been disclosed if this Announcement had been prepared in accordance with the laws of jurisdictions outside the
Unless otherwise determined by PEIF III Bidco or required by the City Code, and permitted by applicable law and regulation, the Offer is not being made available, directly or indirectly, in, into or from a Restricted Jurisdiction and no person may accept the Offer by any use, means or instrumentality (including, but not limited to, facsimile, e-mail or other electronic transmission or telephone) of interstate or foreign commerce of, or of any facility of a national, state or other securities exchange of any Restricted Jurisdiction and the Offer will not be capable of acceptance by any such use, means, instrumentality or facilities.
Accordingly, copies of this Announcement and any other documentation relating to the Offer will not be, and must not be, directly or indirectly, mailed or otherwise forwarded, distributed or sent in or into or from any Restricted Jurisdiction, and persons receiving such documents (including custodians, nominees and trustees) must not mail or otherwise forward, distribute or send such documents in or into or from any Restricted Jurisdiction.
The Offer is subject to the applicable requirements of the Code, the Panel, the London Stock Exchange and the FCA.
Notice to US Stagecoach Shareholders
The Offer is being made for the securities of a
The Offer is being made in
The receipt of cash pursuant to the Offer by a US holder of Stagecoach Shares will likely be a taxable transaction for
It may be difficult for US holders of Stagecoach Shares to enforce their rights and any claim arising out of the US federal securities laws, since PEIF III Bidco and Stagecoach are located in countries other than
In accordance with normal
In accordance with the Code, normal
Forward looking statements
This Announcement (including information incorporated by reference in this Announcement), oral statements made regarding the Offer and other information published by PEIF III Bidco and Stagecoach contain statements which are, or may be deemed to be, "forward-looking statements" with respect to the financial condition, results of operations and business of Stagecoach and certain plans and objectives of PEIF III Bidco. Forward-looking statements are prospective in nature and are not based on historical facts, but rather on current expectations and projections of the management of PEIF III Bidco and Stagecoach about future events, and are therefore subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from the future results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements often use words such as "anticipate", "target", "expect", "estimate", "intend", "plan", "goal", "believe", "hope", "aims", "continue", "will", "may", "should", "would", "could", "is subject to", "budget", "scheduled", "forecast", "intend", or other words of similar meaning. These statements are based on assumptions and assessments made by PEIF III Bidco and/or DWS Infrastructure and/or Stagecoach in light of their experience and their perception of historical trends, current conditions, future developments and other factors they believe appropriate. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty, because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future, and the factors described in the context of such forward-looking statements in this Announcement could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Although it is believed that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, no assurance can be given that such expectations will prove to have been correct and investors are therefore cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.
There are several factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in forward-looking statements. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements are changes in the global, political, economic, business, competitive, market and regulatory forces, future exchange and interest rates, changes in tax rates and future business combinations or dispositions. For a discussion of important factors which could cause actual results to differ from forward-looking statements in relation to Stagecoach Group, refer to the annual report and accounts of Stagecoach Group for the financial year ended 1 May 2021.
Each forward-looking statement speaks only as at the date of this Announcement. None of PEIF III Bidco, the Wider PEIF III Topco Group, Stagecoach nor the Stagecoach Group, nor any of their respective associates or directors, officers, employees or advisers, assumes any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this Announcement (whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise), except as required by applicable law.
The statements contained in this Announcement are made as at the date of this Announcement, unless some other time is specified in relation to them, and service of this Announcement shall not give rise to any implication that there has been no change in the facts set forth in this Announcement since such date. Nothing in this Announcement shall be deemed to be a forecast, projection or estimate of the future financial performance of PEIF III Bidco or the Stagecoach Group except where otherwise stated.
Rounding
Certain figures included in this Announcement have been subjected to rounding adjustments. Accordingly, figures shown in the same category presented in different tables may vary slightly and figures shown as totals in certain tables may not be an arithmetic aggregation of the figures that precede them.
Dealing disclosure requirements
Under Rule 8.3(a) of the Code, any person who is interested in one per cent. or more of any class of relevant securities of an offeree company or of any securities exchange offeror (being any offeror other than an offeror in respect of which it has been announced that its offer is, or is likely to be, solely in cash) must make an Opening Position Disclosure following the commencement of the offer period and, if later, following the announcement in which any securities exchange offeror is first identified.
An Opening Position Disclosure must contain details of the person's interests and short positions in, and rights to subscribe for, any relevant securities of each of (i) the offeree company and (ii) any securities exchange offeror(s). An Opening Position Disclosure by a person to whom Rule 8.3(a) applies must be made by no later than 3.30 p.m. (
Under Rule 8.3(b) of the Code, any person who is, or becomes, interested in one per cent. or more of any class of relevant securities of the offeree company or of any securities exchange offeror must make a Dealing Disclosure if the person deals in any relevant securities of the offeree company or of any securities exchange offeror. A Dealing Disclosure must contain details of the dealing concerned and of the person's interests and short positions in, and rights to subscribe for, any relevant securities of each of (i) the offeree company and (ii) any securities exchange offeror(s), save to the extent that these details have previously been disclosed under Rule 8. A Dealing Disclosure by a person to whom Rule 8.3(b) applies must be made by no later than 3.30 p.m. (
Opening Position Disclosures must also be made by the offeree company and by any offeror and Dealing Disclosures must also be made by the offeree company, by any offeror and by any persons acting in concert with any of them (see Rules 8.1, 8.2 and 8.4). Details of the offeree and offeror companies in respect of whose relevant securities Opening Position Disclosures and Dealing Disclosures must be made can be found in the Disclosure Table on the Panel's website at www.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk, including details of the number of relevant securities in issue, when the offer period commenced and when any offeror was first identified. You should contact the Panel's Market Surveillance Unit on +44 (0)20 7638 0129 if you are in any doubt as to whether you are required to make an Opening Position Disclosure or a Dealing Disclosure.
Publication on website
A copy of this Announcement will be made available, subject to certain restrictions relating to persons resident in Restricted Jurisdictions, free of charge on PEIF III Bidco's website at https://www.dws.com/Our-Profile/media/media-releases/DWS_Infrastructure. For the avoidance of doubt, the contents of those websites are not incorporated into and do not form part of this Announcement.
[1] Morgan Stanley Client Securities Nominees Limited holds 93,720,491 Stagecoach Shares as nominee for PEIF III Bidco.
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